1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to vehicle seat assemblies that may be folded into a sub-floor stowage well or that may be moved to a tip and kneel position for improved ingress and egress.
2. Background Art
Vehicle seats for sport utility vehicles (SUVs), vans and other special purpose vehicles contribute to the versatility of such vehicles. Seats for such vehicles may be converted between a seating position and a storage position, or may be completely removed from the vehicle. Generally, such seats are folded against the floor portion of a floor pan of the vehicle. In this position, the seats provide increased storage volume, but when the seats are folded down they still take up valuable cargo space.
If three or more rows of seats are provided in an SUV or a van the second row of seats tend to block ingress and egress to the rear most row of seats. Persons attempting to enter or exit the rear most row of seats may be required to squeeze between the second row of seats and the door frame or fold the seats down to a storage position. If the seats are folded down, a person must climb over the folded seats to obtain access to the rear most row of seats.
It is an object of the invention to provide a vehicle seat that may be stored below the floor of the vehicle to maximize the cargo carrying capacity of the vehicle. There is also a need for a vehicle seat that may be moved forwardly and downwardly to a position that provides improved access for ingress and egress to seats or cargo areas behind the second row of seats in the vehicle.